Here’s a thought…
“Old age is no joke, but it can feel like one.”
TAD TOMPKINS
Midnight Mutterings | PlayFest 2025
||| MIDNIGHT MUTTERINGS by JACKIE BATES ||| You still have a chance to see PlayFest 2025 at the Grange. (Or even see it again, as I will have done by the time you’re reading this.) Last performances are Friday, and Saturday April 18 and 19, 2025. 7:00 PM at the
Rep. Alex Ramel | 9 Days Left: Inside the final sprint of the 2025 legislative session
||| FROM REP. ALEX RAMEL, 40TH LEGISLATIVE DISTRICT ||| I hope this message finds you well as we move into spring. With just over a week left in the legislative session, I wanted to take a moment to share some exciting updates on the state budget, bills I’ve been working
Drop-in peer grief support group at Orcas Senior Center
||| FROM LENA KASSA for ORCAS SENIOR CENTER ||| Join us for a supportive, non-judgmental space to process grief and mourning with the Drop-In Peer Grief Support Group Wednesdays at 10:00 a.m. at Orcas Senior Center. This group is designed to help normalize your feelings, facilitate healing, and provide understanding.
WSF Weekly Report | Pizza box in the rain; reservations to open next week; work zone cameras
||| FROM STEVE NEVEY for WASHINGTON STATE FERRIES ||| A message from Steve Sometimes, it’s the small gestures that reveal who we are becoming as an organization. Ordinary Sailor Evan Tarbell recently bought pizza for his crew, a kind and thoughtful gesture. But what he did next was even more
Occam’s Razor | Our island, our world through the eyes, pen of S.C. Watson
Welcome to our weekly feature, Occam's Razor, from local artist S.C. Watson.
Letter to Editor | More thoughts on OIHCD levy lift
||| FROM BOB THOMAS ||| USE OF LEVY LIFT FUNDS As with all Orcas commissions, once funding is established the Commissioners have authority for the legal use of the funds. Notwithstanding goals stated in Levy List meetings, correspondence and presentations are just goals and subject to change at the discretion
Gratitude for Springtime on Orcas
||| FROM LAURA WALKER for ORCAS ISLAND GARDEN CLUB ||| Well spring has officially sprung. Calm yourselves by reading Suzette’s “Oops” article this month and know that you’re not alone in feeling like you are behind in your gardening tasks. Over this last week, I’ve planted up and are caring for
LWVSJ Observer Corps | County Council April 15, 2025
||| FROM NECIA QUAST for LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS ||| The council held public hearings and approved ordinances to add members to the county Law and Justice Council; to amend sections of the code regarding recreation and fair advisory boards; and create a pathway to allow existing vacation rentals in
Island Ways | Third Nantucket undersea electric cable needed much sooner than expected
||| FROM THE NANTUCKET INQUIRER & MIRROR ||| Orcas and Nantucket Islands are each roughly the same size and the same distance off their respective coasts. We share the same concerns about the high cost of living, lack of affordable housing, tourist management, ferry problems and environmental degradation. We are
Ready to run? Candidate filing week is May 5 through May 9
||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS ||| Have you ever dreamed of running for office? Are you looking for new ways to get involved in your community? Candidate Filing Week might just be your chance! You can put your name on the ballot for a variety of public offices during
Jury Duty: April 21-25, 2025
||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS ||| For the jury period beginning Monday, April 21st through Friday, April 25th, jurors in groups 2, 3 and 4 are required to report to the San Juan County Courthouse lobby for jury service on Wednesday, April 23rd at 8:30am. Jurors in all other
PlayFest has returned to Orcas Island
||| FROM KATHI CISKOWSKI ||| PlayFest has returned to Orcas Island and it is exciting to see the number of local people involved as actors, directors, tech folk, playwrights and organizational team members for this island tradition. Actors Theater of Orcas Island has put together an evening of six one
County launches pilot project to provide marine transportation services
Services begin this week and will conclude on June 30, 2025 ||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS ||| San Juan County is pleased to launch marine transportation services throughout the islands as part of a pilot project. These services include emergency barge and foot-passenger transportation during disruptions to Washington State
Letter to Editor | About that Public Works plan on Shaw…
||| FROM JENNIFER WOODBRIDGE ||| Dear County Council, County Manager, and Community Planner: Public Works is planning a future for Shaw Island that most Shaw residents have neither asked for nor want. Public Works’ plan includes heavy industrial activity entirely inconsistent with the spirit and intent of the Shaw Subarea
Quiet your mind, walk the labyrinth at Emmanuel Episcopal
||| FROM NANCY AYER ||| What is a labyrinth? A labyrinth is a single, winding path, often in a circular or spiral pattern, that leads from an entrance to a center and back out again. It is distinct from a maze, which has multiple paths and dead ends, intended to be a
LWVSJ Observer Corps | San Juan County Council April 14, 2025
||| FROM NECIA QUAST for LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS ||| Kari Koski updated the Council on the Derelict Vessel program. Old boats are hard to dispose of and our county offers ideal conditions for people to abandon or hide failing boats. San Juan County was the first in the state
